Chapter 449 - 414: Little Thief, You’re Courting Death

Chapter 449: Chapter 414: Little Thief, You’re Courting Death

"I have... the power for one strike..."

Chu Mu made a quick calculation, and the answer was clear.

No matter how much influence he could exert on this Demon Realm, given the current gap between their Grand Realms of Cultivation, he only had enough power for a single strike.

With a True Demon’s Cultivation, he would never be given a second chance.

Sensing the nearly unbreakable Power of Imprisonment on his physical body, Chu Mu’s descending blade seemed to pause for a moment.

His previously undivided focus now spared a bit of energy to peer into this Demon Realm through the great web of heaven and earth.

’While having the entire world in my grasp is an illusion, seeing it all through the great web and its countless Earth Veins is quite real.’

In his eyes, the Demon Realm no longer held any secrets.

The towering Demon City, the army of Demon Puppets standing outside the grand hall like troops assembled for inspection, the countless remnants of Array Prohibitions within the city, some dormant and others mutated in unknown ways...

His Divine Sense flowed along the network of the great web, drifting slowly through this Demon Realm, observing every broken Array Prohibition, the terrain of every region, and all possible dangers.

"Hmm?"

As his Divine Sense swept past a grand hall in the city, Chu Mu was suddenly startled. His Divine Sense snapped back, and after his blade slew several more advancing Demons, he used the power of the great web to send his gaze piercing through the thick Demonic Qi, fixing on a figure wearing a Dragon Robe.

Their eyes met for just an instant before the figure dissolved into specks of fluorescent light before Chu Mu’s very eyes.

Chu Mu subconsciously turned to look at the True Demon. He too was peering into the Demon Realm through the great web, but he seemed to have no reaction.

’The Dragon Robe... That’s the Master of the Secret Realm...’

Chu Mu’s brow furrowed in confusion.

Based on the True Demon’s words and actions, although he feared the Master of the Secret Realm, he was clearly acting with impunity.

The reason for his confidence was likely that the Master of the Secret Realm was unable to reach this Demon Realm in a short amount of time.

’But why would he deliberately appear before me...’

As his thoughts raced, Chu Mu shot an imperceptible glance at the True Demon behind him, and his flickering gaze slowly calmed.

’What was supposed to be a deadlock from which I could profit has become far more complex. Now, a new predator is waiting in the wings...’

’I’m not the one who should be panicking anymore.’

Slowing his blade, Chu Mu gradually recovered his Magical Power and Divine Soul, waiting in silence.

He didn’t care who would ultimately rule this Demon Realm.

And as for this Demon Realm...

He was self-aware enough to know that with his current Cultivation, he had no chance of claiming it.

「Several days passed in the blink of an eye.」

Within the crisscrossing network of Earth Veins, the near-even split of crimson and black from the endless slaughter had undergone a massive shift.

The crimson now occupied the vast majority, while the inky black was like a cornered beast.

Blades of light crisscrossed, and the surging tide of demons seemed to be nearing its end.

Manifesting in reality, this appeared as an almost entirely crimson sky. At a glance, the entire firmament seemed to be ablaze.

The boundless, surging True Demon Qi, under the cover of this crimson sky, sizzled as if it had met its nemesis, the roiling Demonic Qi dissipating wave after wave.

The grand hall remained in ruins. Countless Demon Puppet soldiers stood around the dilapidated structure, their crimson eyes staring up at the sky. An overwhelming killing intent billowed from them, yet they were constrained by some unseen rule, unable to enter the hall in the slightest.

The figure in the Dragon Robe silently passed through the heavily encircled army of Demon Puppets and stepped into the grand hall.

TAP, TAP, TAP, TAP...

The footsteps were clear, but in the current situation, they were unspeakably terrifying to the few conscious people inside the hall.

The man glanced at the pale-faced Li Xiu and the others, then his gaze fixed on the True Demon’s body on the high platform, whose Divine Soul was currently emerged.

In that instant, as if sensing an anomaly, the motionless body of the True Demon suddenly erupted with Demonic Qi. As their eyes met, the True Demon’s pupils constricted. He shot into the air, clearly on high alert.

"A mere incarnation, and you dare come to this Demon Realm!"

The True Demon sneered, but the caution, and even terror, in his eyes was still obvious.

"Though I am but an incarnation, it is more than enough to suppress a traitorous wretch like you who has Fallen into the Demon Dao."

The man’s expression was calm, his gaze looking upon the True Demon as if it were an insignificant ant.

"This isn’t Great Heng!"

The True Demon flew into a rage. "Drop that pompous act! Do you really think the whole world revolves around your Great Heng?"

"Back then, you slaughtered my entire clan! Today, I will cut down this incarnation of yours!"

"The Great Permanence Law states: Those who fall into the Demon Dao shall have their clans exterminated!"

"You held the rank of Marquis. To know the law and break it is a crime deserving of a greater punishment!"

The man’s voice was level, yet it was as if his words were law itself. As he spoke, the crimson sky began to gather roiling thunderclouds. Lightning flashed and thunder roared, a vast and mighty heavenly pressure descending.

"Bullshit law! Manipulating the hearts of the world for your own selfish gain! Do you really take everyone for a fool?"

"I don’t buy any of it! After I cut down this incarnation, I will one day storm the Imperial Capital and shatter your bullshit Celestial Court!"

"I’d like to see if you can still be so high and mighty then!"

These few words seemed to touch the deepest scar in the True Demon’s heart. His expression twisted, and with a furious roar, boundless Demonic Qi surged. His distorted form rapidly changed, and in the blink of an eye, he transformed into the True Demon’s body: a bull-headed humanoid hundreds of feet tall.

"ROAR!"

The True Demon’s eyes were blood-red as he let out an inhuman shriek. Inky-black, curse-like runes began to appear on his body and neck, a multitude of them spinning rapidly around his throat.

Behind this towering True Demon body, a bull-headed demon silhouette thousands of feet tall slowly materialized. The silhouette was wreathed in flickering black flames, and its entire being emanated a thick, ominous aura.

BOOM!

The True Demon thrust out a claw. Its sharp talons, accompanied by a low whistle, seemed to tear through space, imbued with the Power of Heaven and Earth as they arrived in an instant.

The man in the Dragon Robe remained calm, his gaze indifferent as he watched the True Demon empowered by the Power of Heaven and Earth. He paid no mind to the approaching claw.

He simply raised a hand and swiped. A deep purple light erupted, merging with the thunderclouds in the sky and instantly coalescing into a Deep Purple Thunder Sword.

"Slay the demon!"

The man’s voice was low. The Deep Purple Thunder Sword descended from the sky like a Celestial Punishment. In a flash, the world-destroying blade was mere inches from the True Demon.

"Slay this!"

The True Demon, seething with rage, swung a claw forward.

The Deep Purple Thunder Sword viciously chopped down on the True Demon’s deceptively simple claw. A thick, translucent film appeared between them, separating the deep purple from the talons.

BOOM!

An endless roar followed. This long-suffering grand hall, under the force of this collision and the sweep of thunder and fire, finally reached its limit and collapsed with a deafening crash.

Dust billowed and thunderflame swept outward. The army of Demon Puppets gathered around the hall was as fragile as paper in the face of such surging Power, a huge swath of them visibly annihilated.

The few Foundation Establishment cultivators in the hall were almost instantly submerged in the torrent, vanishing without a trace, their fates unknown.

On the high platform, a faint Power of Heaven and Earth swirled, forming a light crimson barrier that protected it. The surging Power crashed against it but could not harm the platform in the slightest.

But as this Power of Heaven and Earth protected the platform, it also seemed to restrict Chu Mu firmly within it, adding another cage to the Power of Imprisonment that already held him.

Naturally, Chu Mu could not be unaware of such a commotion.

Within the crisscrossing network of Earth Veins, the flashing blade light had long since stopped. He was now like someone walking a dog, his body shifting and moving to pull along the remaining manifested Demons.

His mind was entirely focused on the battle unfolding in the Demon City.

He didn’t care about the grudges between them. What he cared about was whether this descended incarnation could contend with the True Demon.

If it could, then his chance for survival had appeared.

Chu Mu briefly sensed the influence he had over this Demon Realm, his gaze already locked onto the earth-shattering battle in the Demon City.

A battle between Nascent Soul Great Powers. A single casual strike contained an almost annihilating terror.

Compared to himself, the difference was like that between heaven and earth. To be caught in the middle of it would be enough to drive one to despair.

"Great Heng..."

Watching the man in the Dragon Robe, Chu Mu pursed his lips, unable to stop himself from thinking about that name again.

The bits and pieces of information he knew about Great Heng flooded his mind.

’The Great Permanence Law... Marquis Red Eagle...’

’The Great Heng Royal Family, and the man in the Dragon Robe before me...’

’The rulers of the Great Heng Immortal Cultivation Immortal World... do they operate like a secular dynasty? Is the entire world their domain?’

Chu Mu wasn’t entirely sure, but it seemed to be the truth.

The man in the Dragon Robe was perhaps the best proof of it.

He spoke as if his words were law, with the clear, domineering majesty of an emperor.

BOOM!

While Chu Mu’s mind wandered, the Nascent Soul battle in the city had already reached a white-hot intensity.

Although the man in the Dragon Robe was merely an incarnation, he was fighting the True Demon on even ground, not at a disadvantage at all.

The True Demon, on the other hand, was a picture of rage. Seeing his nemesis, his eyes were burning with hatred.

The True Demon’s body was hundreds of feet tall, and every move he made contained an indescribable Divine Power.

With the central grand hall as the epicenter, large swaths of buildings and streets had already been reduced to ruins by their rampage.

Inevitably, their fierce battle also triggered many of the city’s remaining Array Prohibitions, but the True Demon, seeing red, no longer cared. In just a short time, his massive True Demon body was covered in bloody wounds.

The man in the Dragon Robe was still majestic, but under the strain of the fierce battle, his body had grown illusory, flickering in and out of sight as if it could dissipate at any moment.

"HAHAHAHA..."

The True Demon clearly noticed this and let out a wild laugh.

"How much longer can your incarnation last?"

"Creating an incarnation from one’s Divine Soul... Did you think I wouldn’t know of this Secret Skill?"

"HAHAHAHA..."

"Today, I will extinguish this wisp of your Divine Soul!"

But then, as if sensing something, the True Demon’s smile froze.

He whipped his head around to look at the high platform, his voice as cold as ice. "You little thief, you’re courting death!"

...